


Try and Fail

by thecrazystorywriter14



Category: Zootopia
Genre: F/M, Hurt/Comfort, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-03
Updated: 2018-02-03
Packaged: 2019-03-12 21:18:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 9,999
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13555782
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thecrazystorywriter14/pseuds/thecrazystorywriter14
Summary: Being the sly fox he is, Nick Wilde tricks Judy Hopps into staying with her. This leads to devastating consequences, trying and trying, and failing. But sometimes trying can lead to success. And an accident leaves Judy devastated, with Nick on her side. And conquering their journey stays at the top of the list - forever.





	1. Try

The air of the cold, barren landscape is a bête noire for any warm-climate mammal. Any cars passing through this town blast their heaters full power and try to maintain control on the icy roads. Any cold-climate mammals wandering around this town wear light jackets and hold warm liquids in a coffee cup in their paws. Vapor rises from their mouths as they let large breaths from their mouths, spreading the moist environment in their mouths into the air. Clouds crowd the sky, and a barely conspicuous light erupts through that barrier.

On a street in this frigid town, the perceptible noise of the puttering of an engine gradually increases as the source patrols the street. The engine belongs to a police cruiser belonging to the largest police force in the city – the Zootopia Police Department. Two figures, barely visible behind the dark windows of this police cruiser, have significant height differences. The taller mammal, with large, triangular ears and a long snout, operates the vehicle. The other figure, with long, gradually widening ears, faces the window and gradually scans the landscape.

"Wow, look at the frost in here," the taller mammal mutters, looking out the window of their police cruiser, the cold landscape of Tundratown surrounding him and his partner. He rubs the window covered with a layer of condensate. "Bogo seriously needs to rethink patrol locations. There's nobody here."

The partner does not look at him. She looks up at the window and smears the window herself. Her eyes dart to the slender mammal beside her. "Looks to me like someone didn't bring a jacket."

Holding one hand to the wheel, his other paw enters his blue pants pocket. For a moment, he glances at a nearby house. He smirks as he looks at her. "I'm sorry, the cold froze my eardrums. Did you just say, 'Nick, please shove me out the door?' " With his smirk still remaining, he pulls his paw from his pocket, holding it out and thrusting lightly in the air to imitate pushing her.

She lets out a humorous snort. "It also appears to me like you would really appreciate the air conditioning – granted, if we were actually  _had_ air conditioning," she fumbles with the controls on the control panel. "Nope."

He frowns, still looking out the window. He wipes the condensate from the window again, slightly wetting his fingertip. He rubs his paws together and grips the steering wheel as he slowly lowers his foot on the gas pedal. As they turn the corner, the communicator on the dash lights up. Hopps scrambles for it and hovers it below her mouth.

"This is WildeHopps, over."

"Wait a minute," Wilde asks, glancing at his partner with widened eyes. "Carrots, did you just call us–"

"Ohh-kay," the communicator interrupts. "I've got something exciting for you. Reports of a recent crime have just come in, and we're putting our trust in you to take a crack at it. For now, we need you guys to gather a few reports. We've sent you the addresses."

"10-4, over." Officer Hopps sets down the communicator, glancing at Nick. "Nick? Did you say something?"

"Why exactly did you call us WildeHopps?"

"Us? Well, Nick, you've been here a while, so – well, I gave it some thought – and I realized we haven't come up with a name for us as a duo."

"Carrots, that's crazy. For one, WildeHopps sounds like a marriage announcement. Two, nobody does that. Three, you'd better find that in a thesaurus because that's literally the worst word I've ever heard."

"Why do you want to throw it away? It's awesome."

"It may be awesome, but it throws my anonymity away. I'd prefer if we used something like Vehicle 1212 or something."

"You're terrible," Hopps says, her phone active in her hand. "This is it. The closest house to the crime spot."

After parking, Officer Wilde opens the door, momentarily forgetting about the cold. When he steps out, the freezing temperature penetrates him and makes a chill travel quickly travel down his spine, and it disperses throughout his whole body. He shivers, and the sound of his teeth chattering echoes across the small neighborhood.

Judy can't help but smile as she looks over her half-frozen partner. "Guess that's why we don't call you an arctic fox. I at least thought you were adapt to some cold." she looks at him again, then slowly walks up to the fox. She wraps her arms around his very narrow body and snuggles her head into his abdomen.

His eyes widen and he places his paws on her shoulders. "Carrots..." Judy giggles and squeezes him tighter. "I... need... air..." he pulls her from his abdomen and takes a deep breath. He gives her a menacing stare, pulls the waistline of his shirt downward, then wipes his shirt with his paws and stuffs his paws in his pockets. He swiftly walks forward when she scrambles to his side.

"Hey! Why didn't you let me do that?"

"Do what?" He shoves both paws into his pockets with a smug smirk on his face.

"Gee, I don't know," she rolls her eyes. "It was obviously apparent that I just wanted to hug you."

"Next time, warn me. I swear you were going savage or something." Again, approaching the house, he outpaces her again. She scrambles up to his side, pacing faster and faster until halting at the front door. "Officer Hopps," he says, gesturing to the door. She glances at him again, who has a similar smug smirk.

Despite the clouds blocking the sun overhead, Nick dons his sunglasses as she taps the door lightly with her knuckles, while Nick clasps both paws behind his back. His stance becomes erect, and he holds his head upward toward the gigantic door.

The door opens, slowly, and a polar bear many times their height looks down at them firmly. "What do you two need?" he asks, his voice sounding impatient and cross.

"Sir," Judy says patiently, "I'm Judy Hopps, ZPD. I don't want to cause you any trouble, but we have multiple reports of a crime that occurred in this area."

"So what? It's not like I can't handle a couple dorks throwing snowballs at each other," he opens the door slightly wider than before, then pulls up the sleeve on his right bicep, revealing a large gash from the elbow to the shoulder. "See this?"

Nick slowly doffs his sunglasses, revealing a pair of widened eyes. "Who did  _that_?"

"Good question," he pulls the sleeve back down. "Got 'er from a knife fight two weeks ago. If you're wonderin' what happened to him, he ain't comin' back. It didn't hurt – nuh-uh. Not one bit. You know what? If I can hurt him, I can sure hurt you guys too. Now, leave or I'll do the very same thing to you. I don't want a police report."

"Sir," Judy looks up at him again. "We're not trying to anger you, but I think threatening a police officer, with certain restrictions, is a Class 2 felony. If you don't know, that's kind of a crime."

His eyes widen. "Felony? Uh, no, no, no. I'm sorry I did that–"

She laughs. "Just let us in. We'll have to keep that instance, just to let you know."

"Keep it?" His eyes widen. "Please, no. I don't want that. Can you just do something else? Here," he digs into his pocket. "I'll give you anything – really – if you just don't do that. I don't want my name anywhere in the files."

"Sir, it's ZPD policy. I can't just do that. It's way too complicated to ignore it. I'm sorry, but a crime's a crime."

"When you put it that way," he pulls out a pistol and points it to the floor. "Now. I don't want to use this – really, I don't – but if you don't let it slide, I'll have to make this situation worse."

"Carrots," Nick whispers, tapping her slightly. "Bad, bad idea. Just do what he wants!"

Judy looks at him again. "You sweet talk him. Maybe you can convince him to put the gun down."

Nick looks at the floor, sighing. He looks up at the polar bear. "Sir, don't you know what you're doing by holding that gun? You're holding a ticket to jail, buddy. You can either put the gun away and get a Class 2 felony or shoot and kill both of us, get a Class 3 murder, and stay in jail your entire life. Think of all the time you'd be spending free instead of dwelling in some metal room."

The polar bear shoves the pistol back into his pocket, opening the door slightly. The two officers file in.

Upon entrance to the house, a white box set upon the right wall shows a 45 with a small circle to the right of the upmost horizontal line of the 5. Nick taps Judy on the shoulder. "Carrots," he whispers, gesturing to the box. Judy's eyes widen as she paces the floor toward the polar bear. The television in the front room has minor frost smeared on it, and three cups covered in condensate sit on end tables around the room. Strolling through the house, Nick frantically glances his eyes around the room, shoving his eyes in his pockets. He loosens his lips and clenches his teeth.

With a firm frown, the polar bear falls into his leather recliner. Judy gestures to a nearby couch and she and her partner sit. "So – what am I supposed to call you?"

"Officer Hopps, sir."

He shakes his head. "I already know you," he points at Wilde. "You. What's your name?"

"Officer Wilde." Nick grasps both paws together on his lap to hide his trembling paws.

The polar bear nods firmly and looks at them. "Ron. I'm a mechanic nut and whatever. Can we just get this over with?"

Judy nods and pulls out her clipboard and carrot pen. "Okay, Ron. I have a couple questions for you. First," she traces her carrot pen down the paper, "let me see here – have you seen any suspicious activity in the area outside your home?" She looks up at the polar bear.

Rick nods slowly. "Yeah, a guy was mugging another one around 10 last night."

Judy scribbles down the information, then passes the clipboard and paper to Nick, bumping his elbow. Nick rubs it and takes the clipboard, then looks at the information. Nick clears his throat and glances at the paper. "Since you saw the guy who did this, did you see his clothing? What was he wearing?" As he looks up, he runs his fingertips over his elbow.

Rick closes his eyes tightly and frowns. "A little," he opens his eyes and raises his fingers into a 'perfect' sign with a slight gap between his thumb and index finger. "He looked around four feet tall, had a black baseball hat and some dark blue jeans. It kinda looked like he had a knife of some sort."

Judy smiles as Nick takes the pen off the paper. She does another short nod at him, and he gapes his mouth, giving her a look of 'are you serious?'. Judy nods again and he glances down at the paper. "Next question: were you involved in or committed any act of violence in the past twenty-four hours?"

"Of course. I told you at the door, remember?"

"I'm just doin' my job," Nick says, scanning over the paper again before shoving it to Judy and standing up.

Judy flashes him a vexatious stare. and stands up, clipboard in hand. Her smile returns. "Thanks for your time. We will call you if we find an accurate match."

Rick leads them out the door. "Uh, don't do that. I kinda want to protect my anonymity. I'm sure glad that's over with." He shuts the door, leaving them in the cold once again. The temperature had decreased dramatically, due to a blizzard starting up, and the two quickly retreat to their cruiser.

"Nice going," Judy says, putting a paw on the seat partition. Are you planning to do that four more times?"

"Do what?"

"You know what. You didn't want to help with the interview."

"Hey – I wasn't the one injuring you with the clipboard. Oh – wait. That wasn't the worst part. It's okay because it's not every day you  _almost get us killed!"_

"That was an accident. You know I'm not Mr. Sweet Talk like you," she rolls her eyes and looks at the clipboard again. "Four more. The next house is just up ahead."

"Well, good. Can't wait to get an early day off."

" _If_ we do." She brings the engine to life and inches the car forward.

After four more reports, the two exit the last house. The cold lets up a little bit, but the temperatures are still frigid. Nick now walks quickly to the car, along with Judy, whose paw is already on the door handle. She rips it open and Nick does the same. They close their doors and glance at one another. "Are we done?" Nick asks, tapping his fingers on the door handle.

She nods. "Yep. We turn these in and might get to go home."

He smirks. "Good. About time."

She shoves the key into the ignition, again, and the engine sputters to life and then dies.

She holds up her paws, then twists the key again. The engine starts, stays on for a little longer than before, then shuts off. She puts her head on the steering wheel. Nick sighs and glances out the window. "We'll never get this done at this rate. Now we'll have to get backup over here, then ride home in the huge cruisers. I hate the seatbelts on those things."

"Hey, at least it's better than walking home."

"Or walking on four legs like our ancestors. They walked around naked wherever they wanted back then – prancing around on four legs," he imitates it with two paws, "and marking their territories with a simple lift of the leg. That would be the life."

"Nick, stop it," she giggles, tapping her head on the steering wheel. "I shouldn't be laughing, but I am. All I'm wondering is why you said that in the first place," she giggles again. "Oh, man. What is wrong with me?"

"It's probably because you're off duty," he looks out the window. "Without that backup, I doubt that we'll ever get back home."

"Yeah... but I've got an idea. Stay here," she steps out and opens the hood. She inspects the engine, looking at it in confusion. Nick, who was once staring at his phone, now opens the door and looks out to his confused friend. He stands from his place and walks up to where she stands. "Carrots, if I was going to check the temperature of a frozen car – which I never have – I would touch the engine to see if it's cold or not," he touches the top of the engine with the knuckles of his right paw, then takes it off quickly. "Looks like your engine's frozen, so your battery doesn't work. We'll have to jump-start the battery and see what that does."

She frowns, her arms crossing her chest. "That's the problem – it might not start. We both are not trained in mechanics. There was that little mechanics class we both took, but I don't think it covered a frozen battery." She walks over to the door, and Nick mirrors her actions. They both shut their doors to conserve heat.

"Mechanics..." his face remains apathetic until a smile gradually appears.

"Yeah, I don't think we could do it." She twists the key again, and the engine fails to start again.

"No," he puts a finger to her lips. "Sh-sh-sh. We just met with a mechanic nut."

"What do you mean?" She stops from attempting to start the car.

"Ron! If we go up to him–"

"–he'll help us?" She wears a similar smile to his.

"Exactly! However, I really don't think that he'll ever want to help us after what I just did."

She remains, pondering until her ears perk up. "Wait a minute. Don't you remember what he said?"

"Who? Ron?"

"Yeah. Don't you remember how he acted when we gave him a Class 2 felony for threatening?"

"Yeah – I do. If you hadn't given him that felony, you'd think he'd actually help somebody."

"That's it, Nick! Have you read the ZPD enforcement code book?"

"Have I read the ZPD enforcement code book? Why? The thing's like two-thousand pages long!"

"Right there, in the glove compartment, is a copy. Give it to me please."

He smirks and produces a copy of the book, setting it on the seat partition. Judy turns it to herself and turns to the middle of the book. "Section 150, code 123 states that any felony below a class 2 can be eradicated from the record books if – let me see here – 'the felon is willing to pay a one-hundred-thousand-dollar fine or assist a law enforcement officer in malfunctioned property, such as vehicles, equipment, or weapons. If the latter is chosen, the felon must completely repair the officer's property, alongside paying a fine of twenty-five-thousand-dollars within two months to omit the record of the felony in question.' "

She looks up at Nick's seat. No evidence of his existence appears visible within the car. Judy looks around the car, calling his name. Nothing. She reaches for her phone when 'Try Everything' emits from it. She looks at the screen. "I guess it's technically not a personal call..." she picks it up and holds it to her ear. "Where are you?"

"Don't worry, Carrots," he gasps, panting, "I'm up the hill. I guess you can tell that I haven't worked out for a while."

"Well, I know what you're up to. You know what you're supposed to say?"

"Carrots, I am more articulate than you, and you're asking what I'm supposed to say?"

"Hey, I didn't take public speaking in high school."

"Neither did I. I told you, Carrots – it's natural. Now, do you want to get home?"

"I guess – but I thought I was going to do it."

"I couldn't risk you going out there."

"You're too nice, Nick."

"See you in a minute, Carrots." He hangs up.

Nick returns about five minutes later with the polar bear carrying a strange device with two cables connected to it. Nick walks to the hood of the car, completely exhausted, and looks through the driver's side window, connecting the cables to the car under Rick's instruction. As he does this, he gestures to the driver's side door. "I need you to start the engine on my word and lightly press on the gas pedal. Make sure it's on neutral."

She climbs into the driver's seat, looking out the window. Nick does a short thumbs up, and she shifts it to neutral and starts the engine. It sputters and starts up, then shuts down once again. Nick walks slowly over to her, knocking on the window. Judy opens the door and looks him in the eyes. "We got to wait a minute while it warms up," Nick fumbles with his fingers, then plants his forearms, an inch after the elbow, palm side down, onto the window frame. "When I tell you to do it again, do the same thing," he gestures towards the gas pedals, "and make sure it's on neutral." A short moment later, Nick instructs her to do it again, and this time the car starts successfully. They let it run on the strange contraption's power, then unhook it, say goodbye to Rick and watch him stroll away happily as they sit in the cold interior of the vehicle.

"What exactly was that thing? It sure wasn't a car." Judy asks, glancing at engine temperature.

Nick smiles. "If you didn't know yet, he invented that thing. He just isn't rich enough to buy a patent for it. It is a portable replacement for a car to help jump-start it. Too bad he's going to be even more in debt than he already is."

She nods, glancing down for a second at the buttons below the radio controls. She rolls her eyes and touches a few buttons. "Hey, didn't you know! The air conditioning  _does_ work!" He spots Nick's satisfied smile as he adjusts the heat to his face.

"What was wrong with it?"

"It appears that somebody kept the heat function turned off. Anyway, speaking of Ron." She shifts the car to drive and turns around completely.

Nick looks at her. "Is it just me, or are we not supposed to go this way?"

Judy smiles. "I'm going to go the other way in a minute. It's just that I had a major last-minute revelation before we leave." She continues forward and stops a minute later in front of a blue house.

"Um, isn't this Rick's house?" Nick asks, looking towards their destination.

She laughs. "Yep," she steps out of the car and Nick follows. "And don't worry – I left the heater on a little so the car doesn't freeze again." Nick gives her a confused stare while they approach the door. Judy taps on the door and it opens again.

The door opens and Rick appears. "Oh, hey, guys. Do you both need something? Did the car stop working again?"

Judy shakes her head. "No, it's fine. But, sir, I'd like to give you something," she reaches into her pocket and pulls out a neat stack of dollar bills. "You were a great help. Really. Take this as a token of our appreciation."

Rick looks at her slowly. "Wait. Why? I don't need this. Use it for yourself." he places both paws on the door, moving it slowly closed. Besides, I was an officer in the ZPD many moons ago. I know the ZPD codebook like the back of my hand. Officers aren't allowed to give perpetrators money."

"You may be a perpetrator, but you're also a former police officer. According to Section 200, Code 43, a police officer can grant a police officer – or former officer – money to support them." She shakes her head and holds it out further. "Please."

Rick pushes the door open wider and takes the money from her outstretched hand. He looks through it and his eyes widen. "This is two thousand dollars."

Nick's eyes almost pop out of his skull. "Two th-" Judy elbows him in the ribs and he almost bites his tongue. He gives her a menacing glance and looks ahead again.

"Use it for your patent," she smiles, putting her paws behind her back. "Or something else you want."

"I can't really use it for my perpetrator side, so I'll keep it to my patent. But, are you absolutely sure you want me to have this?"

She nods. "I wanted to be generous. Besides, it's hard to get a patent nowadays."

Rick smiles. "Thanks. Really. You know what? If I become a millionaire because of this invention, I'll give you half of what I earn. Have a wonderful day, Ms. Hopps."

She smiles. "You too." The door shuts.

The two walk back to their car, and she shuts the door, Nick following. She starts it up, and Nick speaks after she backs out. "Why would you do that?"

She smiles. "I like helping other people. Besides, our apartment costs got cut in half. I have more money than I can spend. Might as well use it on other people."

A short drive to the police station later, the two deliver their reports to the police station. Sitting on a bench overlooking the street in front of the station, Judy looks up at the sun as it begins to travel down to the horizon. She looks at the clustering traffic ahead of her, and she turns around to a loudening panting approaching. She squints at the figure approaching, then she smiles ear-to-ear and she waves her paw in the air. "Nick!"

The fox puts his paw on the backrest of the bench and takes a deep breath, still taking large gulps of air. "Hey."

She frowns, inspecting him. "Where were you this whole time?"

He shrugs. "I got – caught up talking with Wolfard," he smiles and switches the subject simultaneously. "My apartment rent doubled yesterday, so I had to shut it down temporarily this morning before you picked me up," he frowns. "Do you mind if I stay with you tonight? I'll just have to grab a few things from my room."

"Why not?" she lets out a short squeal, and he looks at her in confusion.

"Did you do that?"

"What? No. That was probably a bu – tire or something. Anyway, sit down and we'll be at my place in a little bit."

Shortly, after a couple stops, the duo arrives at the occupied lot of the Grand Pangolin Arms Apartment Complex. The shabby, well-built building stands tall and awaits the partners' entrance. Judy leads Nick into the lobby, up the elevator, and into the hall. Nick inspects the hall, running his finger on the wall for a second.

The wall is rectangular-shaped, tall, and long. Only the left wall contains apartments; the only places on the right are vending machines and ice dispensers, along with guest bathrooms on the far end of the right wall. The carpet of the hall is copper-colored and thin, permitting Nick to hold his foot straight up and run his toes through the carpet. He sticks both paws in his pockets, silently locating his friend standing at the door. Judy shoves the key into the lock and twists it, pushing her way into the room with one paw, the other holding a full, white grocery bag.

The room, dark without illumination, remains still and quiet. The window, on the opposite wall from the door, stays behind a black curtain. A neatly made bed remains still on the far left side of the rectangular room. A table, supporting a digital clock and multiple notepads, sits across from the bed, leaving an aisle between the two furniture. Another clock sits on a low end table next to the bed.

"Okay, so this is where you'll be staying." She instructs Nick to set his luggage down and for him to sit on the bed next to her. He pushes off the floor and plants himself on the bedsheets, where his legs hang slightly off the floor. Judy places the bag next to her and looks at him.

"How long do you think you'll need to stay?" she asks.

He grins. "Are all rabbits this desperate to get rid of foxes, or is just you?" She looks at him for a moment, playfully punching his shoulder. He rubs it and looks at her again.

"Seriously," Judy says sympathetically, "how long are you staying?"

"Probably until I can afford my apartment again."

She nods. "You can stay as long as you need."

A question puzzles her, and she motivates herself to ask it. "If you can't afford when your apartment rent doubles, nor can you afford a car, how do you keep up with your phone plan?"

He smiles without looking at her. "Carrots, that's the reason why I can't afford the car or the high rent. My phone plan is $120 a month – and that's just for infinite data and communication. I almost forgot – my phone in and of itself costs about a thousand dollars. Plus, I haven't gotten any bonuses since that one a week ago. Finnick's got access to my bank account, so the money I've earned through hustling is almost gone. My first paycheck from the force is almost gone too."

Her eyes widen and her ears fall behind her head. "Nick, thank you for telling me," she places her paw on his arm, digs through her pocket with her free paw, and produces another stack of bills. "Here."

Without looking, he holds his paw up. "And don't even think about giving me money. You need it more than me, Carrots."

"Why not?"

"Because, Carrots. I don't want your money. Finnick's gonna steal it anyway."

"Can't you set up a separate account?"

"No, then he'll get suspicious and try to find me. He expects me to fulfill his gambling career."

Judy shakes her head. "C'mon, Nick. Can I at least give you something? Don't you know that you can do something about Finnick?"

"Yes, I know I can do something about him. But if I do? He'll never forgive me. Even if he gets a simple ticket, he'll never let me forget it," he looks down at the floor. "Carrots? Remember that story I told you on the gondolas that one day?"

"Yeah. The one with the scout incident?"

"That's the one. I forgot to tell you that something else happened after that incident."

"What?"

His face falls into an apathetic look, and he glances at the floor. "Carrots, I met Finnick that same day. He wanted to adopt me."

"Adopt you? Why?"

"I don't know. At the time, he seemed so kind and sympathetic, I couldn't think. I let him adopt me, nevertheless. I never saw my mom after that," he closes his eyes. "My mom died two weeks later..." he blinks a couple times, eyes still fixed on the floor.

Judy, who now can't help let out a couple tears, places her paw on his back. "How about your d-dad?"

"He left. I'm a single kid, Carrots. I hated him. All he did was yell at me. That's why I wanted to join the Junior Ranger Scouts. I wanted to get away from my dad as much as possible. Now, I'm grown and have no parents except Finnick. If I get rid of him..."

"You'll lose your last known memory of a parent?"

"Exactly. If I get rid of Finnick, he'll be mad at me. I don't want two people to be mad at me, let alone one."

"Can't you just take the money?"

He shakes his head. "No, Carrots. We're getting paid next week. I also applied for government relief last week."

Her eyes wet with tears. "I want to help, but you don't want to. Please? You're a really important person in my life, and I want to help you."

Below his paws, his eyes widen.  _Important?_ Nick looks up at her. "Carrots – it's been years since I've heard someone say that I'm important to them. But still," He shakes his head. "No is no, Carrots. That money is  _yours_. I can't let you give it to me until I can find a way to save my money without attracting suspicion."

"Nick?" He looks up at her voice. Judy smirks and holds her paws up to him. "C'mere, big guy. Give me a hug."

Without a second thought, he leans his head on her shoulder. She rubs the back of him with her paw, and he lets out a sigh. "You're gonna be okay, Nick. No matter where we go, I'm here to protect you. That's why I wanted to be a police officer – I wanted to make the world a better place – and still do today – even if it involves solving issues, one person at a time."

He pulls out of her hug, looking at her with red eyes. "Oh, Carrots. Thanks for that. I don't know what came over me then – I'm usually strong. But something about you – it reminds me of my mom."

"How so?"

"I don't know. Maybe it was her kindness, her motivation – her love. Even when my dad yelled at her, she didn't get mad. That's probably where I got that from. But you – Carrots, you're like another mom to me. I don't know if that's a good thing or not."

"Of course it is!" she looks at him again. "If I remind you of your mom, then you sure as heck can stay here forever if you feel like it. If that's what makes you feel any better, then stay here as long as you'd like."

He nods, smiling. He then looks at the clock on the table and rubs his stomach. "When'd we have lunch? I don't know about you, but I'm pretty hungry right now."

"That's why we bought the food," she pulls the bag between her and Nick.

As the two chow down on the vegetarian-friendly dinner, Nick looks up at the closet, which has no doors and showcases the internal tools and clothes. "I really wish I could afford something like this. The apartment I have back home is way smaller."

She nods and looks up at him. "About the money you need – I think I have a solution."

"And what is that?"

"Well – it's not really a solution – but you could set up two accounts, and you could add some money to the other account so you don't get Finnick suspicious."

"Alright, look," Nick sets down the fork on the plate in his left paw. "Set up two accounts? Why? Then I'll have to pay for another. Plus, Finnick's gonna still get suspicious. He expects a certain amount a month to come in. It's 3/4 of my monthly paycheck for  _this_ job."

Judy glances up at him, shrugging off the suggestion. She slaps her fork onto the plate and gently disposes of it. "When you're done, how about we do something to take your mind off the money?"

He shrugs, also disposing of his plate. "Sure. What do you have in mind?"

The two mammals settle down for a nice movie connected to her laptop and then decide to retire after. Judy retrieves a pillow and two blankets and sets them on the ground, where Nick refuses her generous offer of sleeping in her bed. Judy climbs into her bed, looking over at Nick, whose eyelids remain shut over his eyes.

She rolls to her side and ponders her day: The reports, her car breaking down, and Nick asking her if he could stay the night. Then, the shocking story. The story and his money problem. If only she could help him out. She had tried, but he was too concerned about her.

Had telling him he was important too soon? A friend is someone who has a shoulder to cry on. He'd literally cried on his shoulder, and she'd helped him rejuvenate.

As he sleeps on the floor, she feels lonelier than before. Feeling as if all her relatives move, leaving her alone. Sitting up on the bed, she takes out a handheld flashlight, scribbling a short sentence onto the sticky note. She sticks it to the wall beside the bed, turning off the flashlight and lying back down on the mattress.

Suddenly, she feels like she isn't in the present. She feels like she is traveling in time, going into the future. She can feel herself, in the future, helping him. Or something helping him. She felt herself crying in the future, which almost made her cry. Something happy – or sad – happening. She knows she will make good, friendly relations with him.

But she wanted more. She wanted a more romantic relationship. But being romantic with a fox was unheard of. Having a romantic relationship – even a marriage – with a fox was crazier than any jackpot that Pawerball could even produce. But part of her knows it isn't right. If she tries to be romantic, he might reject her. If she didn't try, she'd feel rejected by herself.

But she has to try.

She is a trier, after all. It worked with the motivation to join the police force. Now, she wants to try something to risk devastating consequences, ones with irreversible effects. Ones that can ruin everything – even their simple relationship as friends.

But trying is part of her nature. Her grandfather was a trier. He was a major swimmer in the big swimming competitions, a major inventor of one of the most incredible inventions known to rabbitkind, and a role model for her. If her grandfather married somebody, so would she. Her grandfather married the craziest rabbits she'd ever met, but he still got along well with her.

Why? Because he tried. If her grandfather loved her grandmother, then her grandfather would do nothing else but to marry her. The same with herself. She felt a connection with Nick – and she would do nothing else but see what happens if she tries - tries to get him to notice her.


	2. Change

As the sun peeks above the horizon, illuminating the landscape in front of it, warmth intercepts the cool breeze of the night. The light of this gigantic star beams through the small apartment window, not conspicuous among the other high buildings in that region. Judy sits on her bed, awake, watching Nick's relaxed chest balloon and shrink with each participating breath. She switches her eyes from the sunset, then again stares at her best friend slumbering on the makeshift bed.

Seven-o-clock came and went, and then Judy again glances at the clock - 7:32. She lies about a foot from him, wondering when her day would soon begin - as soon as her friend wakes from his torpor.

Finally, after a moment, a heavy groan arises from him. He opens his eyes and blinks, then turns his head to face her, still lying down. "Good morning, Carrots," he says softly, a yawn interrupting his greeting. He stretches his arms above his head, then sits up on his homemade bed, crossing his legs so that his right ankle lies over his left.

The way he sits – with a black shirt and with a pair of grey sweatpants on – and the look of his baggy eyes and ruffled hair makes her smile internally. She quickly pushes the thought away, but her mind replaces it with another incessant thought. Having trouble admitting it to herself, she pushes the thought away.

"How'd you sleep?"

He yawns again, scratching the back of his arm. "Pretty good." He gradually stands from his spot on the floor, staggering over to his suitcase and fumbling his uniform in both hands as he retreats to the bathroom to change.

He exits a few minutes later, finding Judy sitting on the bed eating a donut. He sits next to her, looking at the snack in her paw. He smiles and extends one of his arms. "You get one for me?" He laughs awkwardly, following the gaze of Judy's outstretched finger, pointing at a donut and a coffee. Nodding, he collects his breakfast, moving the donut to his mouth, noticing her already in uniform. "Looks like someone took advantage of time." He takes a generous bite of his donut.

She smiles. "Is that a backhanded compliment?"

"You're your own judge." The food in his mouth muffles the words. As he bites into his donut, again Judy runs her paws up through the fur atop his head. He hovers his paws above his head. "Carrots - what are you doing?"

"Looks like someone didn't comb his hair or brush his teeth."

His eyes widen. "How did you -"

"I may not be Mr. Articulate like you, but I can definitely tell you haven't. Obviously, as I can see, you haven't combed your hair. I know you didn't brush your teeth because I didn't hear it from the bathroom, and it wouldn't make sense to do that anyway," she says, gesturing toward his donut. "Imagine how disgusting coffee would taste after brushing your teeth."

"Everyone has hygienic problems, Carrots. I'll cross that bridge when I come to it," he takes another bite of donut and sip of his coffee. "Now, I'm just going to savor the moment."

Finishing the morning routine, the partners scramble to their police cruiser. Judy looks over at Nick, smiling. She reaches over to him and brushes a portion of his uniform. "Got a bit of donut there. I really wasn't thinking I'd say that anytime soon."

A casual drive later the two arrive and park; then walk into the station. It smells of the usual donuts and coffee consumed by the staff, and an occasional conversation now and then, echoing throughout the inside of the station replay the same conversation, blending into the other indistinct conversations. Clawhauser sits at the desk, slowly consuming donuts. He smiles and Nick and Judy approach him, setting down his donut. "Good morning, guys."

Judy smiles, and Nick does the same. He nods and walks slowly away as Judy continues to quickly chat with Clawhauser. After a moment, she politely leaves her conversation and walks toward Nick, tapping him lightly on the back of the arm.

He turns his head to her and grins lightly. "Hey again, Carrots," he pauses. "I just got word that my apartment's price grew overnight. You wouldn't mind allowing me to stay a little longer, would you?"

An ear-to-ear grin spreads across her face. "Sure." Her response is not as heartfelt as her imagination – she imagines him being with her the next two months.

He looks at her, his eyebrow slowly rising to the point of almost receding onto his scalp. "Carrots? Earth to Carrots..."

Her smile fades and she pops back into reality. "Oh, sorry. Daydreaming right there," she says, chuckling awkwardly.

His eyebrows fluctuate, and his paws curl into fists and he places them on the top of his hips. He stands for a minute, examining her. He shrugs and moves his hands to his side, face relaxing. "C'mon, Carrots," he gestures to the bullpen, slowly heading that direction.

She follows him into the crowded room, the familiar scent of donuts and coffee increasing. Nick likes the smell, and it reminds him of the bakery he'd gone to before he met Judy. He joins Judy on the large chair, eyeing her, who looks ahead at Bogo, who he never noticed enter the room. Despite her gestures, his head still faces her.

"Wilde," he calls, and Nick looks at him. "I need you to focus. If you want to stare at somebody, stare at  _me_."

Nick nods quickly, showing an awkward smile, and he can feel his cheeks redden beneath his fur. Judy, who notices his embarrassment, quickly raises her hand.

Bogo sighs, placing his tiny reading glasses on the bridge of his nose, and looks at her. "Yes, Hopps?"

"You mind if Nick and I be excused for a minute?"

He hesitates, filing through the thick stack of papers attached to the clipboard in hand. "No. Sit down. I don't have time for nonsense."

"Sir, this isn't -"

"Don't care. Sit."

Judy rolls her eyes and plops down on the chair, just as Bogo speaks. "Alright, everybody. Shut it!"

Silence.

"We have two items on the docket," Bogo pounds the clipboard with his finger. "First, I'd like to acknowledge that there will be a cookout next Monday. Seven PM sharp. Don't miss it. Next-" he flips a page over the clip on the clipboard, "- we have received reports of incessant squealing coming from a densely populated part of town, a half mile from here. This, along with the case we have not solved since last week, are both a high priority," he steps from the podium, "Grizolli, Fangmeyer, Delgato - investigate the squealing," he holds out a folder, which a well-built tiger takes from his grasp. "Wilde, Hopps, you will be investigating the suspicious noises in Savannah Central."

Judy receives the file from Bogo, opens it quickly, scans the page, nodding as she closes it. She stands after the chief concludes the assignment distribution.

"Chief?" Bogo looks back quickly, again donning his glasses. Judy walks up and fiddles with her hand. "You told Nick to sit down, and he got embarrassed for a reason. I think he's tired. Do you mind just, I don't know, toning down the anger just a bit? He normally doesn't have these anomalies."

The chief frowns. "That's his problem, Hopps. Tell him to get to bed earlier." He turns back to the open door, walks through, and shuts the door behind him.

* * *

 

** Grand Pangolin Arms Apartment Complex (GPAAC), 5:11 PM **

Nick sits before the four-pane window, running his fingers through a deck of cards in his paw. The blue, cloudless sky contains no visible sun. He picks out several cards and slaps them down on the windowsill, messily organizing them, then collecting them back into a pile and inserting them back into his main pile in his paw. He sets the pile down as neatly as possible down onto the windowsill. He gathers his uniform, before strewn in the corner of the room, and attempts to fold his pants.

Judy holds her paw out to him, grasping the waistline of the pants, folding the garment successfully, and delivers the garment to his paws. Nick manages a smile and sets the garment down on the nearby desk. He paws his shirt and holds it up to her. "So, Carrots, I've taught you a couple things before. I think it's time you help me with something."

"Why not?" Judy walks over to her dresser and holds up a pink, long-sleeved shirt. "I'll show you how to do it," she lies it flat on the bed. "Bring the arms in, fold it in half, like a book. Then, grab the lowest part and fold it over all of it. If you want, you can fold it over again."

"OK," he smooths his uniform, buttoning the buttons one by one. "So, I bring the arms in, then fold it over like a book?"

"Yep," she watches him closely. "Now, you fold – nope, not like that," her paws intervene, fixing his error in folding. "Like that. Now, you fold–"

"–From the bottom and over the rest, right?"

"Yes, that's right. Yours is a little big, so fold – actually, don't fold yet. Do you have your tie?"

He nods and places his tie next to the shirt. "Okay," Judy takes the tie, folds it, and places it into the middle of the shirt, running straight up the line where the buttons connect. "Now, you fold it." Nick folds the shirt up from the bottom, and he lifts it up from underneath.

"Look at you, Nick! You just did that!" Judy yells in appreciation.

"Yeah, I guess I did."

"When you're getting ready tomorrow, I'll teach you to iron."

"Carrots, I don't know why, but it's such a weird feeling. Normally, I know a lot, and now, you're teaching me things. They're the simplest things, but I've never learned them. It's great to have you do that, I gotta give you that. There's probably a few other things you could teach me – like cooking, for example."

"We'll see about that. Maybe we can squeeze in a few minutes at the station – there's a kitchen there." She smirks and paws the playing cards in her paws, which she had taken from the windowsill. "I can't play cards. How about you teach me how to play?"

"I got those from my great uncle. He's known as Mr. Speedy because of how fast he could deal," he takes the cards from her and moves the table from the corner of the room. Judy walks over to him with a chair in paw and places it on the end of the table facing the far wall. Nick deals the cards to her and himself and she sits. "However, I'm not Mr. Speedy," he finishes dealing the cards within a minute. "Okay, I only know one game, and I shouldn't say the name, but fortunately, when I played the game for my first time – I was probably ten or eleven – he called it 'Up'. The name stuck, and I've called it that ever since."

As Nick silently prepares his own cards, Judy mirrors his actions, and Nick begins to speak as she mirrors him. "Four cards face down – don't look at them. Then you place four of them face up – yes, you can look at those – on top of the facedown cards.

"Feel free to replace the face-up cards with the highest value in your hand. Now, pick three cards at random to use as your hand, then put the rest of the cards face-down in a pile next to your eight cards. This pile will be your deck."

"What do we do now?"

"Well, I'm going to place down a card," he places a 3 of hearts. "Now, with the three cards in your hand, find one bigger than the one I placed down, in this case, it is a three of hearts. If there isn't, see if you have a two or a ten – those count as wild cards – and if you don't, pick out of your pile there," he points to his own pile next to the eight cards, "and wait until you get a two, ten, or a number higher than the card I placed down," he points to the 3 of hearts on the table. "Also, make sure you always have three in your hand at all times. Pick up from your pile, and then when you run out you play the four cards you placed face up, then play roulette with the ones you placed down. You try."

Judy studies the three of hearts, then places a four. "Great, Carrots," Nick congratulates. "Now I place a higher card," he places a Jack. "See that? You can either play a two, ten, queen, king, or ace. See?"

"Yeah," she places an ace, and Nick sighs, gathering up the small pile. "If you don't have a card higher or equal to the one I placed down, or a two or a ten, then you pick up the whole pile."

Twenty minutes later, Judy places her paw on her last facedown card. "Okay, this is it. A giant pile in front of me, and if this isn't higher than a Jack, or a two or a ten, then I get the whole pile, right?"

"Yep. Now, let's see." Below, he has a facedown card and a card facing up atop the facedown card.

Judy pulls the card up to herself, sighs, then pulls her hand over the top of the large pile of cards. Her face curves into an expression of disappointment. A grin starts to spread across Nick's face, then fades into apprehension as a smile appears on Judy's face, and she slaps a ten down on the large pile. Nick leans his head backward, smiling at Judy's ability to overawe him. He examines his facedown card. "Oh, I would've lost anyway. I had a jack as my face-up and a three as my face-down. You did great, Carrots."

"Well, thanks. It was beginner's luck, really."

"I'm sorry to disagree with you, Carrots, but the way you played was impressive. You seemed like an old hand instead of a novice. You beat me, the grand-nephew of Mr. Speedy, the greatest card player I've known. If he was still alive, I bet you'd beat him in the first few tries."

She smirks. "Well, you want to get pizza for us? Or, how about a fancy restaurant or something?"

He raises his eyebrows, curving his mouth down. "Carrots, you know I c-"

She interrupts him. "I was kidding. I'm just as fine with a pizza at Zominos."

His slight face of displeasure fades. "Your choice. I'm fine with it."

"So, who's getting it?" She says, eyes widening as she watches him stand.

He smiles. "I can get it. It's just I haven't driven in what?" He taps his chin. "Ten years?"

She laughs. "You drove yesterday. Wasn't that your first time driving in a while, though?"

He shakes his head. "Yes, that was," he takes out his wallet and shows her his license. "I may look young, but it doesn't expire for a while."

She doesn't focus on the date. She looks at his picture, Nick in his early twenties with the fur on the top of his head neatly combed back, wearing a nice red tie neatly tucked into the collar of a clean, done up white shirt. Her eyes then trace to the date, which expires two years from the current year. "'A while,' huh?"

He laughs. Two years isn't that bad," he frowns. "Do you want pizza or not?"

She moves her head back from his wallet. "Sorry. You want to use my car?”

“This is the last day of my rental. The pizza place is just down the street, and the rental’s not too far either. I’ll go and pick up the pizza and then drop off the rental if that’s okay.”

“Will it take longer than an hour?”

“Thirty minutes tops.”

“Okay. Don’t crash.”

He laughs. "I'll be okay, Carrots." He turns, keys in hand, and departs.

Twenty-five minutes later, he arrives back with a box in his hands, knocking on Judy's door.

"Who is it?" She says from inside.

"The mayor," he smiles. "Who do you think it is?"

Judy laughs lightly and opens the door. "Hello again. My guess is you didn't crash since you came back in one piece."

"Sure, I guess you could say that. I'm not the best driver in the world, but I'm still alive. The walk back was peaceful and not as long as expected.”

"That's good," she says. "Do you want to eat now?"

"Sure."

After devouring the meal in ten minutes, Nick sits on her bed. "That was good."

"Good," she says, picking up his plate he had left on the nightstand and disposing of it, sitting next to him. "At least you enjoyed it."

"Well," he says, picking up his phone and quickly looking at it. "It's 6:10. Do you want to watch a movie, or play spin the bottle..."

She looks at him, squinting. "What?"

"I was kidding, Carrots. We can watch a movie, or go downstairs and hang out, go to bed... there are countless things we can do."

"Well, I'm not going to bed at six. I guess we can go out for ice cream or something. I'll pay."

He nods. "There's one across the street from here. We can walk."

Judy paws her keys and reaches for the door, but Nick beats her to it and gestures outside. "Go ahead, Carrots," Nick says playfully while she rolls her eyes and exits. Nick walks after her, and after she locks the door they descend in the elevator to the first floor.

Outside, Nick shoves both paws in his pockets and looks about the street. He had seen this street many times since Finnick had driven him through many of the streets of Zootopia before he became a police officer. The sun, to his left, is about fifteen degrees from the horizon. Despite this fact, the cool air from the surrounding ocean penetrates his fur. He tries to refrain from shivering, but the urge to shiver overpowers his ability to resist, and Judy happens to look over at him the same moment he shivers.

Immediately Judy frowns, looking at her friend. "You're cold?"

"It's just the ocean, Carrots. The sun's still out," he says, his paws and arms weaved across his chest.

"We can go back and get your coat if you want," she turns toward the building. She produces her keys from her pocket.

"No, no, no. You're not wearing a coat either. Besides, it's a short walk."

"Are you sure-"

"Yes, Carrots. I'm fine."

"Okay. You will get a little bit colder after we eat, though."

"Which is understandable."

Judy rolls her eyes as they continue down the cracked sidewalk toward the ice cream parlor, being surprisingly silent. After a moment, they walk through the doors of the olden-style ice-cream parlor, decorated with antique paraphernalia. Various scents, especially those of caramel, chocolate, and mint, linger in the air. The line leading up to the counter is little, only a pig standing in this line. Nick and Judy stand behind her as Nick produces his wallet.

"Wait. I said I would pay-" Judy begins.

"Up-up-up-up," he says quickly, putting his finger to her mouth. "I'm paying, and that's final."

Judy sighs, putting her wallet back into her pocket. The pig steps off to the side and Nick looks at Judy. "What do you feel like?"

"Vanilla with caramel and chocolate sprinkles, with a maraschino cherry on top."

Nick repeats her statement to the cashier, but a call from her uncle prohibits her from attending to the rest of Nick's order, so she assumes he had ordered two different sundaes because she knows he prefers chocolate or strawberry ice cream. She watches Nick closely after he pays and steps off to the side, waiting. Shortly after Judy finishes her call he leads Judy to a table with two chairs and sits.

The waiter walks up with one bowl in paw and sets it down on the table. Judy looks at it in confusion. "You only got one?"

"Good examining, Hopps. Now see how many spoons there are."

She examines it quickly. "Two."

"Now put the information together, and make an inference."

"Since you got one sundae and this sundae has two spoons, we are both sharing this. But I thought you hate vanilla."

"It sure isn't my favorite, but it's okay. I'll eat it. Now, let's eat," he picks up one of the spoons and takes a bite of it.

She does the same. "Good."

He stands on his second bite. "I gotta go to the bathroom," he says, the spoon still in his hand, full of his third bite of ice cream.

He walks right past her, looking the other way and deliberately tipping his spoon right above her head. The cold sweet falls directly between her two stalky ears.

"Oh, C'mon," she says, not looking at him. "Was that really necessary? Go get some napkins."

She expects a dry, rough, papery material to touch her fur. Instead, a wet, muscle-like organ wipes across the top of her scalp.

It took a moment, but she recognizes the feeling. "Eww! Did you just lick the top of my head?"

He nods at her enraged, but playful eyes. "Yes. I was too lazy to get napkins."

She rolls her eyes. "C'mon. You know how immature that is."

"Compared to you, yes."

She laughs as she turns her head away, back to the ice cream. "So, are you actually going to the bathroom?"

He sits down. "Let's just say that it was worth spilling ice cream on your head."

After finishing their meal, they return home to the apartment and Judy flops onto the bed. "I'm bored."

He ignores her. "Want to hear a joke? What do you call a cow lying down?"

She rolls her eyes. "What?"

"Ground beef."

With a smile, she shakes her head. "Oh, Nick. I don't know if that joke was degrading or innocent."

"It's your judgment."

She smiles and rolls her eyes. "Anyway, what do you want to do?"

He smiles. "The joke really didn't impress you," he puts his finger to his chin for a moment, then shoves his hands to his side in exhaustion. "I've got nothing."

"Well, we might as well just get to bed, then."

He shrugs. "Alright," he says, bending down next to her. Her eyes shrink in confusion before Nick plants a kiss on her cheek. "Goodnight."

Incredulous, she blushes. She jumps onto her bed, joyful. "Goodnight. Thanks."

She lies on her bed, wondering about him. He'd paid for their ice cream when she had said she would, he'd driven to get the food when she volunteered, and he kissed her on the cheek. He bought the food and the ice cream out of his own wallet after he only had two-hundred-and-something odd dollars in his bank account.

_ He's changing. He admires me, _  she thought.  _He admires me and doesn't want to lose my trust. That's why he's acting so strange._  He didn't suddenly have a personality change.

_ He loves me. _

_ And I'm gonna find a way to love him back. _


End file.
